Two Cubes, One Unlucky Super Soldier
by CGKrows
Summary: There were two universe-transcending cubes: One was the Tesseract, and the other was the Allspark. Both crackled with energy that was just as mysterious as the universes that they influenced. Then there was Steve Rogers, the unlucky superhero that was flung into a different reality because of those two cubes. He'll come to learn that not all alien races are like Asgardians.


There were two universe-transcending cubes: One was the Tesseract, and the other was the Allspark. Both crackled with energy that was just as mysterious as the universes that they influenced. Then there was Steve Rogers, the unlucky superhero that was flung into a different reality because of those two cubes. Evidently, even a kid from Brooklyn like him couldn't escape the madness of being an extraordinary person, meeting an alien race that was not Asgardian, becoming a worthy ally with army rangers, making friends with a young but quirky pickup truck driver, and constantly running into a teenager by the name of Witwicky. But don't forget, old comrades appear in strange places.

* * *

**Chapter One: One Cube is Blue, Another Metallic**

* * *

Captain Steven Grant Rogers, that was his name. He usually just went by Steve, though more often than not he'd be called 'Cap' or 'Captain' by his teammates. That wasn't all that bad either, even though the man had a real dislike for throwing around his station. The man admired the ideals of equality, honored fairness, and couldn't lie for a single bone in his body. Rogers was a World War II veteran, a very well-known component in the battle for his service unlike most soldiers; A truly grand tactician for the troubled time. In the beginning, he wasn't much beyond a scrawny sickly kid from Brooklyn with a friend being sent off to the front lines. Then there was a German scientist named Dr. Erskine, and everything changed for him. Steve literally went from zero to hero in a span of minutes, all thanks to an elderly doctor who believed in the little guy. He fought for his country, becoming the famed Captain America, combating the corrupt H.Y.D.R.A. and inadvertently saving the world. He had been MIA for well over seventy years after one of his missions went literally downhill, with a number of government divisions searching for his crashed plane. Then it was around 2011 when people found him again, and by that time he was a living legend defrosted from a block of ice in the Arctic.

Let's say it was quite the culture shock for the famous superhero Captain America, the first of the Avengers, to wake up in the future his friend Howard Stark only ever dreamed of becoming reality. Upon overcoming that mind-boggling shock and destroying the facility that he was contained in, life for Steve was… overwhelming. There was so much to catch up on, and not enough time. Hell, when did he ever have the time anymore? Then again, when it all quieted down, there was always too much leftover. Rogers often reflected on this in his more morose hours of the day. But that didn't keep him down, heck no! His mother and father brought him up pretty good from their less than fortunate standing, he knew better. So, the man plowed through his new everyday life, struggling to learn what he could of the current time and simply assimilate. Rogers was stubborn about it, of course he was. Yet just kept on going, moving, working.

Nicholas Fury was the man who gave him that work. After a very tall pile of documents and a few coffees, Steve had come to understand that the man was the leader of an organization called S.H.I.E.L.D. Much to his surprise, his old war buddies and Peggy (Lord, _Peggy!_) had been the ones to found the secret government division, and here he was, being a part of something they created in the name of his memory. If only they knew he was alive and kicking…

Not that it mattered at that time all that much, because his life and every other human on the planet was in danger of being enslaved by a crazed "god" Loki with an alien army. Which resulted in meeting four extraordinary individuals brought on to help stop this insane conqueror: A Russian assassin Natasha Romanov, a specialized scientist in gamma radiation with a very green health problem, the brilliant but arrogant son of Howard Stark, and Thor, the "godly" brother of the enemy they were facing. Steve respected Natasha, mainly because of his experience with Peggy (Agh, _Peggy…_), but also from the way she seemed to be able to handle nearly any sort of situation. Banner, the scientist, was a honest yet quiet man, and as much as he was a risk to anyone and everyone he was around, Steve still liked the guy. Thor was someone Rogers had mixed feelings about, but if the "god" was going to cooperate with S.H.I.E.L.D., he had no problem with him.

But Anthony Stark… the genius made his blood boil. He was disrespectful, arrogant, and always had the foolish idea in his head that there was a back door to every situation. Steve had enough experience in his life to know there was not a back door. Sometimes you were just stuck, and nothing more could be done. Like his last mission before the crash. There sure as hell was not a back door in that situation! Then, when the end was playing out right before their eyes, the motley crew of estranged people finally worked together under Steve's tacticanary skills. The end result? They _won_. Rogers somehow found companionship with each member of their team, the Avengers. After months of being without any kind of steady friendship, it was nice to have it all back.

Thus it brings us to the present, where the self-declared "Science Bros" were working on creating a transportation device meant to utilize the power of the Tesseract to send Thor and his criminal brother back to Asgard, to face a justice worthy of his actions. Fury was supposedly combating the alleged "Council" for Loki to be released, but from the information Tony was stealing, Steve could tell Fury was losing. Thor, being the dedicated brother he was, declared that he'd fight against any and all who would stop him from going to Asgard. Barton, the archer who they had saved from Loki's malevolent mind-control, wanted the nutter to be tried on Earth. Natasha and the scientists were neutral about the whole situation, simply wanting the enemy to be shoved out of the picture. Rogers had to agree with them. He wasn't any sort of politician, just a kid from Brooklyn that had enough common sense to want Loki out of their hair.

"Good thing we're nearly done," commented Tony, his face serious for maybe the third time Steve had known him, "Because Fury's fresh out of excuses for his mob of superiors."

Lord, didn't the super soldier know it. But true to Stark's word, the machine was finished the very next day. With a speed that Steve never knew S.H.I.E.L.D. possessed, a meeting place and time was set up a few hours into the afternoon with a secure block spanning a five hundred foot radius. Not that it was very hard to do, since Manhattan was still in shambles from the attack. They all met in some kind of square, all of them dressed in civilian clothes excluding Thor and his brother.

To Rogers, it was a strangely touching moment in his life, similar to those brief days in between missions with his old buddies, drinking away the nights in bombed cities and not getting drunk in the slightest. They stood in a semicircle, surrounding Loki and Thor with an obvious air of confliction. Nobody really wanted to see Thor leave, as most of them finally got to actually know him. But then there was the criminal next to him, who had to return to Asgard. To further that point, at least three of the six Avengers had their choice weapons with them, excluding Thor. Natasha's were guns, hidden somewhere on her person. Clint his bow, the case laid out behind him. Captain his shield, leaning against his legs. So with a great sense of awkwardness, the hammer-wielding blonde said his goodbyes to each member.

"Goodbye, Man of Iron," spoke the thunderer, giving the genius a firm but delicate handshake. Stark wasn't much of a hugger, so at least he got a modest salutations.

He moved down the line to Natasha and Clint, who stood next to one another like old friends, slight smiles on their faces. Thor, wise enough now to know physical contact would result in death from the assassins, simply bowed, then continued on.

Thor stood before Bruce, smiling widely. He liked the man, and the beast behind the man even more. Though the green giant was destructive, he was quite the character, as well as powerful.

"Dr. Banner," acknowledged the Asgardian, offering a handshake once again. It was short but firm.

Then the warrior came to the Captain, staring at the man who seemed so old yet all too young for a few quiet moments. Thor understood, that though all of his comrades of Earth were haunted in some way by their past, Rogers was tortured by the phantoms, not simply haunted. Long life was part of Asgard's culture, but for Midgard? Their minds were not meant for it. But the Captain could take it, even if his heart seemed to ail.

"It has been an honor fighting beside you, Captain. I wish the circumstances were better, so that my father could meet you and mother could welcome you to our halls."

Steve smiled at him, that charming expression that many a pretty dame in the war found painfully beautiful. He had an idea why Thor would want to show him off to his parents. It probably had something to do with the fact his shield could combat Mjolnir on equal grounds. Yeah, that sounds very… Thor.

"Maybe sometime," responded the super soldier, offering a hand.

Thor just about beamed. Rogers was the only person on Earth at that moment besides his brother that could properly shake his hand. He gave the man a strong handshake, though Steve found himself being shoved into a hug of all things by the "god" of thunder. Yep, this was _definitely_ different from the War days. Awkwardly, Steve pried himself away from Thor, bending slightly to grasp at his shield. It became a constant reassurance over the years, and nothing was wrong with having it at your disposal when shipping an alien criminal to another planet with a dangerous machine for transport.

But of course, nothing goes smoothly with Steve' bizarre kind of luck. He watched as the scientists pulled out the device from the reinforced case, similar to a canister with strangely norse decor along the metal. Another case was opened, revealing the Tesseract for all to see. Minutes later, Selvig pulled up, repeatedly apologizing for being so late. Thor gave him the mother of all bear hugs, the two laughing jovially together. Then the elderly scientist went to help the other geniuses, holding the device as Dr. Banner carefully placed the cube into the canister with a thick pair of prongs.

Unbidden, a flash of memories swept into the forefront of Rogers' mind. His face hardened, brow creasing with his lips set in a firm line. That damn thing, the Tesseract, was the root of all his life's troubles. It was the reason the Red Skull was bent on world domination, and was his ultimate downfall. It was the reason Steve had to crash the plane, because with the cube the red-skinned villain had powered the weapons aboard, meant to bomb all major cities existing in the 1940's. It was the reason he didn't get that dance with Peggy, who he knew was alive around the age of ninety with a large family and plenty of grandkids. So, the bitterness of those memories was warranted.

They finished loading the device, and the others were whispering amongst themselves about Loki, who appeared exceptionally like a sulking infant mere feet away. Banner and Selvig moved towards the thunderer, offering him the device to take him back home. Thor's expression took on a somber deposition, taking it grimly with his left hand. In his other was his hammer, and without any sympathy, he offered the other handle of the device to his brother. Loki then looked up, eyes suddenly laced with slight fear. Steve, as much as he hated to say it, felt somewhat guilty. From what Thor told him, Asgardian justice is not a simple walk in the park that the thunderer thought Earth's prisons were. But the super soldier said nothing, his feelings towards the criminal filling him yet again with bitterness. Too many sour reminders of the past, really.

After staring dumbly at the device presented him, Loki shot out his hand and grasped at the handle. Thor glanced around at his Midgardian friends one last time, nodding solemnly. Steve grasped at his shield, the others focused on the two Asgardians. The thunderer twisted the handle in a single quick motion, standing firm

Yet what they expected to have happen, didn't. The Tesseract activated, but the power input was increasing faster than it was meant to inside the device. Blue sparks flew, crackling against its seemingly glass containment, a spiderweb of color cutting itself into the surfaces until it ultimately shattered. Loki and Thor immediately dropped it, fearing that the power would eat at them next. Clint and Natasha quickly seized the troublesome 'god,' standing agape as the Tesseract kept building energy, the glow growing exponentially.

"Fuck!" yelped Stark, dashing to his hot-rod car to procure his backup equipment. Selvig and Banner scrambled after him, rushing to bring the appropriate tools. There was an uproar amongst the standing members, smatterings of fear developing into tsunamis. Even Loki, someone who had previously handled the power source, seemed afraid.

"What is happening?" demanded Thor, hammer grasped tightly in his right fist.

"The power input is off the charts!" cried Selvig from the cars, scrambling with the other sciencey males.

"How're we supposed to stop it, Doc?" Called Clint, Loki still in his hands.

"You can't! Not easily!" Replied Stark, as Selvig was busy.

"Then what? We blow up Central Park?!" Natasha cried, holding Loki's other side firmly, her face giving away some of her fearful emotion.

"We need to isolate it, contain it! That was the point of the transportation device!" answered Banner, running over swiftly with the two other men right behind, "It was meant to trap the Tesseract's energy inside, sending it all into a contained loop so that it wouldn't elevate past the machine's abilities. But the energy input is more than it was before, and obviously we couldn't factor in all possibilities!"

The Tesseract itself crackled dangerously, much like a viper hissing at its offender. They all stepped back, except for one.

The Captain stood there stolid, his eyes betraying the rushing madness of his thoughts. Steve was a tactician, he was great at creating plans. But, the only few scenarios he had ended with him frying. He glanced at his shield briefly, pondering. Then the soldier glanced back at his team, Selvig, and Loki. Natasha read him like an open book.

"No Captain!" she bellowed over the noise of the Tesseract, stepping away from Loki to face her commander.

Steve shook his head rapidly, "Back before the crash, Schmidt was absorbed by the cube! This is the only scenario I have right now that ends nicely!"

"What?!" cried Clint, confused by the situation and worried about the impending doom.

"Cap, stop being a drama llama! We can do this another way, okay buddy?" suggested Tony, watching the blonde warily.

Thor simply stared beside Loki, having moved to take Natasha's place. The brothers had no idea what to do in such a troublingly dangerous situation, and one of them was chained up and gagged. What were they supposed to do? Though the Tesseract belonged in their realm, they had little knowledge of the item. It was as mysterious as the universe itself. And the look Rogers had in his eyes, the thunderer knew nothing could sway him. He needed to do this.

"This is the fault of compassion, Loki. One you best remember," he muttered roughly to his brother. Loki looked at him, but did not to show he heard. Only stared at the blue energy, countenance silently conflicted with pondering thoughts.

The others were hoping to disway their leader, the Captain, but little changed. The blonde glanced between his team and the Tesseract. The cube was near critical mass already. Most, if not all of the transportation device was gone, destroyed by the sheer power the energy the item emitted. So, with his shield hurriedly strapped to his arm, Steve rushed towards the cube. His team was screaming, but it was lost on him.

As soon as Rogers had set foot into the energy field, pain nearly devoured all form of feeling and thought. Just about all his willpower was used to keep himself conscious, let alone his heart pumping. His trusty shield danced with electric blue, the energy sparkling in a chaotic dance. The patriotic paint was crumbling, falling away into the currents of the Tesseract, revealing the polished vibranium underneath. It seemed as though the cosmic cube was challenging the soldier, daring him to come closer. Steve didn't back down, straining his muscles with each shaky step. The single man felt he was moving entire mountain ranges, crushing his shoulder blades into resisting energies that appeared to stab into his chest yet leave no trace of assault.

The wind picked up sharply, throwing itself at Rogers and tearing at his jacket, pressuring. He could see little ahead of him anymore, the light the Tesseract emitted being so blindingly bright. Yet a vague boxed outline stood out against it all, the man's metaphorical north star to follow. The remaining Avengers were awestruck, seeing their commander, a dear friend and comrade, fighting to conquer a power greater than them all. They could do nothing, not without possibly risking Steve's life further.

_Such are the odds the warrior is accustomed to working under_, Thor thought grimly.

To the side, Natasha had called in the Director, demanding immediate backup. Fury was simply red-faced with the agent on the other side of the line. Captain Rogers, a World War II veteran that had no grasp whatsoever of present day, stopping the Tesseract, an extremely advanced power source? It was _maddening_. If the super soldier was there to hear that, however, he'd be insulted. The Captain flew an extremely advanced airplane built by the Red Skull, without any prior understanding of airplanes in general, into the Arctic. He if he could do that, work present day technology without any help, and deal with the bizarre pop culture on the internet, the hero could very well deal with an advanced power source from another world.

Steve was mere feet away from the cube now, knees bent with his stance on the complete defensive. All of him was screaming for relief, from his toes up to his stinging baby-blue eyes. Tears were forming in eyes,_ for heaven's sakes!_ So much anguish and pain, burning through muscle. How he wasn't disintegrating into a billion little particles, he ha no idea. Liquid fire was rushing in a flurry through his system, searching for freedom. Wind tore at him still, energy lashing out. Nothing was left of the spangled paint on his once symbolic shield, only metal. He didn't have that much time, with the ground shaking beneath him. His goal was so close, but the strain was beyond taxing. What could he do? Nothing should be destroyed because of their actions, for trying to send two Asgardians back to their realm. _Innocents should never have to pay for the troubles of soldiers._ In a final last ditch effort, the super soldier leapt forward, his right hand outstretched.

As the pads of his fingers brushed the cosmic cube, all the suffering Rogers had been put through ceased unexpectedly. The Captain blinked. Then blinked again, eyes alit in childlike surprise. He could see the Tesseract as bright as day, no obstruction clouding his sight. Energy still crackled about him, yet nothing harmed his person. Nothing was attacking. The man turned his head, grabbing the cube as he straightened himself to stand. His team, the Avengers, stared directly at him. Steve was holding the power source with his_ bare hands_, not flinching in the slightest from the charged energy dancing around him. Just what was going on?

Captain stood in place, just as confused. Glancing down with uncertainty, the Tesseract blinked at him innocently. I had been so destructive before, angry almost. But once it came in contact with him, the item calmed immediately.

That only ensured what was to come. All at once, blue ignited into screaming white. The sky above the soldier opened up an eager maw, revealing the very fabric of the universe unabashedly. Steve's eyes widened at the sight. It was exactly the same as the Battle of New York, and just the same as it was in the plane when Red Skull was swallowed into the void of space. Except it looked so different. In the back of his mind, as he grasped his shield and the cube, fear grew beside spite. The wind rushed at him, all thoughts prior forgotten as it snatched Rogers up to shove him down the very throat of the portal. Yet in that split second, a flash of red shot after him, caught in the wind's grasp along with him. The portal chopped down, making its disappearance. None of the onlookers moved.

He was gone.

* * *

It was just another day at Sector Seven, experimenting with alien technologies and tracking NBEs (Non-Biological Entities) on Earth to detain them for further analysis. This division of the government was a ghost, not even known to the greater part of the government itself. Sector Seven was, in all senses of the words, the ultimate secret. A hidden legacy of only a select few, located inside the Hoover Dam. An alternate version of S.H.I.E.L.D. in an alternate universe.

Today was a scheduled test run for the Cube, a monstrous metallic monument that was surging with unlimited raw energy. But it was living energy, if that made any sense. A focused beam of its power could bring any piece of technology to life, NBEs loaded with destructive little weapons and unique intelligence. It had been discovered in this area, deep in the rock. The Hoover Dam had been built to hide its secret, the energy signature it gave off concealed by layers of rock and concrete. The Cube was the crown jewel, and the greatest mystery. It would crackle and spit, blue sparks dancing across the glyphs criss-crossing its rough metal surface. Some of the brightest in the world were assigned to study it, along with their collection of NBEs kept in 'deep freeze.'

"Are we clear for tests, Hunter?"

A scientist, middle-aged and bespeckled, started. He looked at his superior brightly. "Yessir! Looks good from here, as you can see. I think Simmons is in the operating room, waiting for your okay."

The man, somewhat tall with a bushy brunette mustache and receding hair, nodded. "Thank you, Hunter. Keep monitoring."

He walked away from the younger male, striding through the organized chaos that the Cube room was. Suspended ramps and sprawling open office spaces were scattered about, electronics weaving through the chaos like an expansive serpent of wire. As he passed, a squad of specialized S.W.A.T. marched by. They were always called on when tests were being made. The Cube was such an unpredictable thing, sometimes technology inside the Cube room would react instead of the operating room. Standard procedure, really.

The Cube began sputtering. A few heads turned, glasses adjusted with perplexed expressions. A brief flux in the source's energy, but nothing serious. The computers contentedly recorded the instance, and the scientists went back to their own business.

But the sputtering started up again, stronger than it was seconds before. More heads turned, and concern was flashing across a few wary faces. That young man, Dr. Sydney Rydell Hunter, checked the computer readings. The fluctuations were increasing incrementally, signifying some sort of build-up. His concern increased, and his hand reached out and grabbed the phone at his desk. He pressed speed-dial.

His superior immediately picked up before the first ring could chime. "Banachek?"

"Sir, call off the test. Something's happening with the Cube."

Hunter could imagine the concern gracing the other man's features. "Explain."

"Well, it was sputtering. Very routine, the computers record fluxes like that all the time at random intervals in the day. But it's sputtering again, Sir. And from the readings I'm getting, it's building."

"Put your department on alert, Doctor. Get your teams to monitor the anomaly," he said firmly.

"Yessir." Hunter hung up, immediately throwing himself into a flurry.

"CODE BLUE, PEOPLE! ALL HANDS ON DECK! CODE BLUE!"

People jumped, jerking, and starting at the order. All personnel that had been on study along the suspended ramps evacuated swiftly, hurrying to their stations. Yelling, demanding, ordering, it all echoed inside the Cube room. Electricians rushed to flip on the sub-generators, which ran off an alternate source of energy that hadn't come in contact with the metallic monument. Minutes later Simmons came bursting onto the scene, followed by his fleet of agents. Banachek was right behind.

"It's Code Blue, Boys! You know the drill! Get yourself together!" Simmons called over the furious activity of the room.

Both S.W.A.T. and SS (Sector Seven) agents encircled the monstrously sized energy source, weapons aimed and ready. Banachek had made his way over to Dr. Hunter, finding the man rapidly clicking away at his desktop computer.

"What's the status, Hunter?"

"Not good," stated the young man, "This hasn't ever happened to us before, or to my formers in the last few decades. The Cube's behavior is very habitual, Sir. It stays at a constant power frequency, then sputters, readjusting itself like a digital camera refocusing its lense. All very normal, nothing serious. But now, one of its routine resets seems to be reacting to something. The teams don't have an inkling of what could be doing it."

"Could it be an NBE connecting to it somehow?" suggested Banachek.

"It's a very slim chance, Sir. Their energy input is so minute in comparison, it wouldn't be able to set the Cube off. This thing it's reacting to is on a much larger scale, maybe on par with the Cube itself."

"On par, Doctor? We haven't encountered anything _on this green Earth_ that can be on par with this monument."

"That's exactly the reason why I'm worried. The Cube is still charging."

A voice suddenly called out to the young scientist, "Sydney! She's starting to generate a magnetic field!"

His eyes widened, "What?! She's that far along?"

"I'm afraid so, Sir!" answered another.

"Magnetic field?"

Hunter turned to his superior. "Anything containing metal gravitates towards the Cube. It can increase to the point anything can float, but that's all far-fetched theory surrounding the monument. It's a definite sign of a reaction."

"Stay alert, boys!" yelled Simmons.

Energy was visibly moving, skittering over the metallic surface of the Cube with an electric blue almost exactly like the Tesseract. Glyphs glowed, flickering similar to glitching headlights on an old military jeep. It hummed, a low sound vibration that seemed to calm all the activity in the room and cause everyone to simply watch. Unbenounced to them, the weak magnetic field soon dissipated, collapsing in on itself. A loud bang was the leftover, loud enough to shake the entire place with its echoing walls. The agents and S.W.A.T. nervously shifted their weapons, Simmons' eyes darting around. Humming became louder, higher in frequency. It made the soldiers' skin tingle with the ghost of sensations, the vibrations bouncing off their exposed skin. Light flashed, energy crackling and screeching as the power flow skyrocketed. A shower of sparks rained down at the men armed below, causing them to scatter in fear of instant death. More poured down, building up until a waterfall of electric light raced down to the concrete floor and disappeared harmlessly. Crackling became crashing, crunching, booming. Scientists evacuated the scene, more guards and soldiers rushing in. The Dam shook as one, as the Cube seemed to take a deep shaky breath.

It exhaled.

The Cube opened up, a machine prying itself open with nimble fingers to the core of its beginning. So much energy surged around the opening, it was near-blinding. But once the Cube completely rearranged its parts, the sight within the swirling mess of blue was breathtaking.

"ARE YOU SEEING THIS?!" cried Simmons. Banachek was speechless.

Before them all was the universe. The expansive black spread out in front of their eyes, littered with nebulas, galaxies, and stars. All so mesmerizing, painted with color so vibrant but pleasantly muted. But, it wasn't theirs. Banachek himself didn't know how he was partial to this information, he just knew. A subconscious slip of knowledge that he held in his mind like the rest of the people in the room. The sight was indeed space, a universe open to their viewing, but foreign compared to their own.

Then a light came, a brilliant blue just like the Cube, caressing and cocooning something within its glow. It was moving so fast, shining so bright, they had to blink from the sheer speed and color the light held. The closer it came, the clearer the image. Something was wrapped in that light, tall like a man but young. Entrancing. So very foreign, but so very familiar. It drew ever nearer, shooting so fast that it was impossible to watch with the naked eye. Nothing but a streak of white outlined in baby blue. There was little warning of its approach, only the sound of howling wind. How that was even possible, it was unknown. There was no sound in space. Yet here, there was.

"MOVE!" Simmons bellowed, retreating away from the monument. The soldiers scrambled, just clearing the area as the light came slamming into the concrete. It burned, flickering white flames too bright and hot for organic eyes. The Cube rapidly rebuilt itself, folding back together into the perfect cubical shape from before. It snapped shut with a heavy boom, a slip of electricity dancing up the crease in the metal until no trace of imperfection remained. Nothing but silence from the monument, _only_ silence.

Little did these people know that the Cube, their powerful source of energy, was linked with the Cube held in Captain Steven Joseph Rogers' hands, hidden from sight beneath his vibranium shield. Both were powerful, each from their own place in existence, connected. And the Tesseract had chosen Rogers, for whatever reason. Through the Tesseract, so had the Allspark chosen him. Both had made their choice.

Said man was sprawled out crookedly on the cracked concrete floor before the Allspark, the Cube of this universe. He let out a disgruntled moan, feeling a jolt of pain wracking through his body. The super soldier rarely ever felt that magnitude of pain, as his enhanced body would rapidly regenerate any minor injuries he suffered. Lord, what had he seen? That portal had swallowed him whole alright, sling-shotting him through the overwhelming expanse, then chucking Rogers through something else entirely. Not to mention Steve swore he saw someone in the corner of his eyes. Red and metallic, like Stark's suit. He discarded the thought immediately. The man had thrown himself through one portal, he was sworn to never do it since.

Groaning louder, Rogers shifted. He felt like a creaking wooden toy, but at least he was alive after the entire ordeal. He clenched his grasping hands, holding tightly to the straps of his shield and the Tesseract. Slowly the man pulled himself from the broken floor, putting himself in a sitting position with the Cube to his chest; His shield arm covered it protectively. Steve's eyes slid open, only to close from the bright flood lights shining directly into his retinas. Blinking a few times, his surroundings openly presented themselves.

**_Damn_** repeated in Rogers' head like an irritating mantra. There were four, maybe five squads of armed men swarming him, semi-automatic firearms aimed point-blank. He was in a vast warehouse-sized room, filled with computers and varying sites of hardware. The walls were rock, excavated what seemed to have been with dynamite. Probably done well before he ever showed up. Turning his blonde head, Steve noticed the suspended maze of ramps mapped out above him, all leading into a single source. And it was _behind_ him. His baby-blue eyes widened in awe at the sight that he was met with as he turned.

It was huge. To the Captain, it was comparable to the size of those flying whales the Chitauri used to invade New York. But it was solid metal, or so it appeared, giving off heat like any other living being._ Just shaped into an extra large keepsake box_. There were pictographs carved, maybe printed into the surface metal, blending together to become a manasherie of jumbled symbols. He was tempted by somewhat childish urge to touch it. Shaking the thought away, Rogers carefully slid the Tesseract into his leather jacket pocket, watching the soldiers stare at him all too intensely. Did they think he was an alien? He really wondered sometimes why people from the future, or should he say the 21st Century, always assumed first and never asked later. It was a real bad habit, and honestly quite rude. Steve hobbled into standing, unbalanced from his untimely collision with the floor not moments ago.

"I wouldn't move if I were you," called out a voice. Turning to the source, the super soldier was met with the sight of a tall lanky male, dressed in S.W.A.T. regalia with a matching black beret. He had dark curly hair slipping from under the hat, his skin wrinkled somewhat and staring with hard brown eyes. His appearance was very distinct compared to the other armed personnel, with his large nose and arrogant air surrounding him. It was surely ten times worse than Stark, possibly more. Steve didn't have many friendly thoughts about this man, and he hadn't even spoken to him.

Rogers glanced at the squads. He had his shield, he could charge through most of the gunfire, break apart their ranks. It could work, he could escape this mess he found himself in. The only question was where the exit door was located. Another man, dressed in a suit, stepped forward through the sea of soldiers. Steve thought he looked a lot like Coulson, with the receding hairline and neat clothes. Just the height and mustache threw off the image, along with his light brown eyes. The stranger stopped a few feet away from him.

"Hello, who are you?" he asked calmly, "How did you make the Cube do what it just did, opening up like Pandora's box?" He was very casual, and unnerving. Not like Coulson at all, who had been always a pleasant conversationalist, if he wasn't tripping over his words with fanboyish embarrassment.

The Captain kept his countenance neutral, as he didn't exactly want to answer. Which Cube does he want to know about? The monstrously-sized one behind him, which he knew nothing about, or the one he hid in his pocket? Either way, the super soldier couldn't actually explain it anyway. The Tesseract simply took him, ripped him from the plaza where Loki was to be sent off, and thrown the poor blonde head-first into this bizarre place. It didn't seem too weird per se, as he was used to being around the Starks and meeting villainous tech-nuts similar to Red Skull.

The black beret, the one who seemed to be in charge of the squads, moved carefully over to male in the suit, whispering. "Banachek, he's not going to tell us anything. We should just put him in detainment and let the nerds analyze him under a magnifying glass."

Steve Rogers fought the urge to roll his eyes. He's a super soldier, enhanced hearing and all that jazz. He'd also like the add this room was obviously a worthy echo chamber, so either way, he could hear them with or without his special hearing. But it was his advantage, and their failure. Steve watched as the two men rapidly conversed, trying to hush their voices when the whispers sounded so clearly in his ears. The young man took another glancing look-around, noting the big blast doors to the far side of the room. Those doors probably lead the way to the outside. If Rogers was going to get out of here, he should do it now, whilst the two argue in angry whispers like children.

In one swift sinuous movement, Rogers threw up his shield arm in front of him and charged. Half a dozen S.W.A.T. found themselves bowled over into the unforgiving concrete floor, guns flung from their grasp as they were sprawled out. Shouts and the clicking of guns filled the air, confusion and sudden panic rising amongst their ranks. The super soldier didn't hesitate to smash a couple more armed personnel into the floor, turning about on his heels to dodge the abrupt rain of bullets. They pinged harmlessly off his shiny vibranium shield, and without pause the young man sprinted to the blast doors. _Of course they have to be shut_, he thought agitatedly. Bullets flew past him as he stood before the heavy steel barriers, but with a solid hit from his shield into the space between the doors, Steve pried them apart, darting through the small space he created. Cries of astonishment and horror came from behind him, but the super soldier paid no attention.

Steve Rogers ran down the dimly lit corridor presented to him, eyeing the pipes lining the sides of the walls. Phrases like "Air Support" and "Main Electrical" flashed by in bright yellow and red paint. Where ever he was, it required fresh oxygen from what he guessed was the outside world. Was the super soldier underground, or just trapped someplace where the air would be normally thin? Some cave systems, he remembered, required air because of their size. Nonetheless, if he followed those two pipes, he'd find his way out. Hopefully, anyway. He was still trying to get 'a hang' of present culture norms. Stuff like oxygen pipes and power connections hadn't changed in the last sixty-six or so years, right?

The young man just followed his instincts and common sense. Rushing along the hallways, he kept the sight of those specific pipelines in sight. His shield was kept defensively up near his upper body and head, in case he found himself bogged down in the corridor from incoming fire. Every time he turned a corner or chanced a glance behind him, the tips of gun barrels and the tones of raised voices were close. Not exceptionally so, as Steve was a super soldier who could run as fast as an Olympic runner with lighter weighted clothing than an individual in a S.W.A.T. team. As he was climbing a set of stairs, a good sign if any, an alarm went off. _Took them long enough_, he thought. The voice over the intercom was garbled from the volume, but it was obvious it was about him. Rogers didn't stop, nor would he until miles away from this outright confusing place.

Finally reaching the top of the concrete stairs, the super soldier smashed open the door, finding himself in an electrical control room with men wearing white hard-hats. The one closest to him, a stout fellow with large metal-rimmed glasses, looked utterly terrified. Did Steve appear scary? Bucky, back in the War, told him he could be intimidating. But scary? If that was true, then all the dames wanting to jump his bones were nutcases of a special variety. Rogers turned his head about hurriedly, eyes locking on the door to the far side of the room. Sunlight was shining through the small window built into the thick exit. The super soldier immediately reacted, jumping over the computer terminals throwing open the slammer.

He halted a few paces away from the building, his breaths quick, taking in the sight. A dam? That was new. It explained why the base below required air support. Between all that water and rock, he doubted there'd be much ventilation. Shaking his head, Captain Steve Rogers ran for the roadway he could see that lead to the highway. If there was one thing he could always count on, it would be the belief in hitchhiking. He just had to be faster than those pursuing him, and that the super soldier was.


End file.
